New Girl - 2x16 The Aftermath
by YoGurlWhatYoNameIs
Summary: Nick allowed his feelings to take charge and he kissed Jess. But how will they handle it after? And most of all, how will the guys handle it? Spoilers from Cooler (2x15)
1. Chapter 1

"Schmidt, what on _earth_ are you eating?" Winston squeezed his eyes together lightly as he passed the island, heading straight for the fridge.

"I'm trying a detox. It's Scottish oatmeal with a mixture of exotic fruits. You should really try it." Schmidt swallowed, giving Winston another famous talking to.

"It looks like a homeless man's vomit. I'll think I'll pass." Winston replied without looking at Schmidt, grabbing the orange juice from the shelf on the side of the fridge door.

"Winston, I will say this again. Treat your body like a-" Schmidt held in his frustration as he raised a finger.

"Like a temple, I know. For the twentieth time, I get it." Winston threw a sarcastic grin at Schmidt as he leant against the kitchen top. "Hey, where's Nick and Jess?" He lightly frowned after removing the juice bottle from his lips, licking them in the process.

"Jess is still in her room with Sam and Nick is snoring outrageously loudly in his pit." Schmidt spat the last part of his sentence with disgust.

It was weird to start the morning with only two people up in the loft, according to Winston. Once one person awake, the rest followed. "Your hook up still in your room?" Schmidt threw Winston a smug nod as he showed the pride he felt for his room mate.

"Dude, Daisy's no 'hook up'. She's great, I can seriously see myself starting something with her-" Winston admitted, peering back to the hallway where Daisy slept in his room. "No, no, no, Winston!" Schmidt sighed, pushing himself off of the island stool.

"Rule number one of hook ups-" He began, raising his finger. "She's not a hook up." Winston added. "Do not get attached!" Schmidt prodded his best friend in the gut.

"Do not prod me with your pedicured fingers!" Winston yelled in his posh accent.

"Keep the noise down, Winston. My hook up's still asleep, too." Schmidt glared at Winston. "Last night was amazing. She was so emotional due to the fact I was previously fat and mine and Cece's whirlwind of a relationship." Schmidt's expression quickly changed from a scowl to a grin of pride. "It wasn't really a whirlwind, just a lot of sex..." Winston muttered with a shrug as Schmidt clearly ignored him.

"My inner sexual snowflake blossomed." Schmidt grinned with his words, pride taking over. Giving Schmidt one look he was no stranger to, Winston pointed to the table behind the sofa.

"Jar. Now."

...

Jess' eyes fluttered open as she awakened from what felt like a peaceful and relaxed sleep. Blinking a few times, Jess peered up at her ceiling with half opened eyes, slowly feeling her head become heavy with the amount drink inhaled from last night.

She began to remind of herself of the events from the previous night. They played True American, she remembers that. Her and Nick-

NICK.

Jess' already large and bright eyes shot wide open before sitting up without a breath.

Oh my god, she thought. Her heart began to race like never before as she thought back to, what happened. The kiss. Oh god, the kiss.

Jess found herself daydreaming about that intense, sharp, melting moment her and Nick had shared. What on earth had gotten into him? She knew something had changed when Nick blurted out that sentence earlier on in the evening. "_Not like this_."

Nick's words were quick and desperate, Jess recalled. What on earth had gotten into him? But Jess' other question was, what the hell had gotten into her?! Grabbing the pillow behind her, Jess leaned her elbows into it. Head in her hands, she screamed silently before punching the pillow.

...

Rolling over, Nick checked his digital alarm clock. '10.34 AM'. That was some sleep, Nick sighed.

It took Nick a few moments to realize what actually happened last night. Once or twice, the memory had to repeat itself in his mind for it to sink in. Eyes open wide with realization, Nick clenched his fist together.

"Oh my god!" His words were a strained whisper, but the tensing in his muscles and face spoke otherwise. Turning on his back, Nick's hand moved to his face.

What on earth had gotten into him?! Why did he do that? It's Jess! His room mate and one of his best friends! Why, why, why?!

He went over his stupid in-the-moment action through his mind. Grabbing her arm, pressing his lips against hers longingly, not knowing where to place his hands. But it all fell together perfectly. _She kissed back_.

Nick's heart began to race at that thought. It wasn't a one guy job. She acted upon it. She didn't pull away or yell or hit Nick. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pushed her body against his. She even let him kiss her once or twice more.

Nick's mind was swirling around with unanswered questions as well as panic. What would everyone say? What would Sam do? Would Jess tell anyone? Would it be kept a secret? Did she really want that kiss? But the one question that was noticeably swimming through Nick's mind was; Did he regret it? Nick sighed. No.

Not one little bit.


	2. Chapter 2

Okay. Breathe, Jess. Don't panic. It's not _that _bad. Oh, who are you kidding. This is so bad!

What about Sam?!

With that thought, Jess' eyes widened even more as her head spun to her right. And there was Sam, in such a deep sleep. How did she not notice his heavy breathing? Oh, that's right. Because she was thinking about that god damn kiss.

In fact, after every other thought, her mind would always go back to that kiss. What was so, thought-indulging about that kiss, anyway? Why was it so great? Jess was trying so hard to deny what that kiss had done to her.

That kiss, that perfect kiss allowed her to just release all of that buried un-treated tension between her and Nick that she'd always ignored. That urge she felt when their lips met. They linked, just like that. Something in that kiss made Jess realize what she'd been missing with everyone else.

With Spencer, with Paul, with Russell, even with Sam.

_Passion_.

...

How am I going to step out of that door? Nick thought with panic. A lot of panic.

He couldn't face them. He couldn't face her. Sam would kill him. What if Jess picks Sam? No, shut up, Nick. You can't be thinking like that. You and Jess? Nope. Never gonna happen.

Nick shook his head, using the turtle face as he argued with himself in his mind. But why not? She clearly enjoyed that kiss. And earlier in the night, when they were locked behind the iron curtain? They were sitting down, and Jess said she wanted to kiss him. In a joking way, but Nick felt like it was more in depth than that. They shared a moment there.

Their eyes locked, and Nick felt his heart rate go way up.

It could happen. Plus, they both admitted a couple of months ago that they were two friends, that sometimes were attracted to each other. That can't just go away, can it? Closing his eyes, Nick took in a deep breath. The horrible feeling of uneasiness took over his body.

You need to leave this room, Nick. It's eating you alive.

...

Jess, you need to go. Get out bed. Now.

Jess closed her eyes tight as she thought about what was waiting outside that door. Confrontation. Communicating with Nick. How could she look at him? Just the thought of him made her stomach flip.

That's it, I'm staying in this room for ever. I shall live off of my macaroni and cheese jewellery box. It's edible, right?

Jumping lightly, Jess felt her phone vibrate, lost in the covers. Fumbling about, Jess wanted it to stop. She didn't want to wake Sam. She did _not_ want to speak to him, he looked too innocent. If he spoke one word to Jess, she'd easily give something away.

Picking up her phone with nervous hands, Jess studied the caller I.D before answering. "Cece, hey." Jess sighed. Finally. A person she could speak to without feeling nervous.

"Are you on your way yet?" Cece asked her best friend.

"What?" Jess frowned, rubbing her face as the morning finally kicked in.

"Jess, are you even out of bed?!" Cece yelled through her phone as she reached over to paint her toe nails. Given the silence through the phone, she sighed with panic.

"Jess, the wedding convention starts in two hours. You need to get your butt round here to get ready. Are the guys even ready? Why would I even ask such a question. This is going to turn into a nightmare..." Cece's loud rant were only muffles as Jess thought of all the things rushing around in her mind. She didn't want to face anyone, but she simply had to. She now had a reason of leaving her room.

"Cece, Cece. Calm down. I'll be round as soon as possible, okay?" Jess reassured her best friend before finally hanging up, throwing her phone on the covers in front of her. Just get up, open the door and leave your room. With that, Jess pushed herself off of the bed and headed straight to her door with courage.

Turning the handle, her door flew wide open. Then, that little ounce of courage swallowed itself right up.


	3. Chapter 3

Their eyes locked. Their hearts dropped.

It was the first time of seeing each other since last night's,_ incident_. It was weird, and awkward.

Letting out a light gasp, Jess swallowed hard before rushing back into her room, slamming the door behind her. Leaning against it, Jess' eyes moved to her bed, which was now being accompanied by an awake Sam.

"Whoa, babe. What's with the slamming door?" Sam stood up and stretched, looking at Jess in the process.

"Oh, s-sorry." Jess breathed, her words only a whisper. Clearing her throat, she stood up straight. "There was a-a, a spider in the hall." She shrugged, looking down.

"A spider? Want me to get it for you?" Sam slowly made his way around the bed with a sarcastic smirk on his lips.

"No, no. You don't have to do that. It's probably dead." Jess replied with a quick reaction. Watching Sam's face turn into a face of light confusion, Jess had to think on the spot once more.

"I probably gave it a heart attack, from the door slamming. It's little spider-sized heart wouldn't have managed." Jess' sentence ended in a whisper. Why was she saying these words?

Letting out a chuckle, Sam leaned in and gave Jess a light kiss on the lips, freezing Jess' skin with nerves. "Hm, your lips taste different." Sam pointed out, but didn't seem near enough as bothered as Jess.

"What? How is that possible? Lips don't change taste, that's impossible." Jess snapped back, throwing in nervous chuckles as she followed Sam out of her room.

"Morning, sleepy heads." Schmidt called out as he spotted the couple making their way into the kitchen.

"Whoa, crowded loft in here this morning." Sam looked around at the loft residents and their guests before sitting on the stool next to Nick. Nick froze just as he was about to take a mouthful of cereal.

His heart racing, he didn't know what to do. Did Sam know? No, not possible. Why would he be having breakfast with me if he knew?

Dropping the spoon into the bowl in front of him, Nick sighed and looked up unwillingly.

He locked eyes with Jess.

It seemed like forever that they were wrapped in each other's orbs.

Pulling her eyes away, Jess looked everywhere but Nick. "There's so many people in this kitchen, I can't breathe." She squeaked, barely heard underneath everyone's conversations.

Nick heard. He was still observing Jess. He wanted to know what she was thinking, how she was feeling.

"So, last night was eventful, huh?" Schmidt spoke up as he leaned against the kitchen side next to Holly, who was sipping on a recently made coffee.

"Wh-what?" Jess looked up, just as Nick did.

"What was so eventful about last night? Everything seemed normal to me." Nick snapped back as everyone muttered along.

"I hooked up, Winston hooked up, Jess and Sam most probably hooked up." Schmidt stated these facts proudly, watching everyone give him the 'really, Schmidt?' look.

Nick looked down as he thought about Jess and Sam in the same bed. Did they have sex after that kiss? What a slap in the face.

"And, Nick. How lonely you must be feeling right now. You hooked up with no one." Schmidt's grin was growing as he thought about the beautiful hot girl next to him whom Nick and him were fighting over.

Nick's head snapped up towards Jess again as they shared desperate expressions.

"Yep, that's me. The one that didn't hook up, at all. Not even a little bit of hooking up. I got nothing." Nick ranted with panic. He could feel Jess' big round, perfect eyes burning into him as he made things worse.

"Are you sad about that, Nick?" Holly looked over at Nick with tense eyes, lightly biting her lip. "Yes, I am-" Nick replied without thinking before studying her expression. Last night, he would have been trying his best to make this girl feel bad for him. That's what she liked, right?

But now, now he was worried about Jess' reaction. "No, no. I feel pretty good about myself." He corrected himself quickly, his eyes darting around the room.

"I don't mind that I went to bed alone." He shrugged. Taking a pause, he thought about what else he wanted to say.

"In fact, the night ended perfectly." Nick breathed, his eyes moving to Jess'. He could see her swallow.

Pushing himself away from the kitchen counter, Winston placed arm around Daisy, his action snapping Jess and Nick away from each other. "Nick, you tried jumping off of the ledge. How on earth was that a perfect ending to your night?" He frowned.

"I didn't try to jump..." Nick sighed, hanging his head.

"We will be talking about that incident later." Schmidt spoke his words coldly.

"We should go get ready for Cece's Indian marriage convention thing." Winston gave his room mates a look before leading Daisy out of the kitchen. "Oh god, I forgot." Schmidt pulled his eyebrows together.

"Why are you going to a convention with the girl who is in love with you?" Holly stood up straight, remembering who Cece was.

"What?" Jess and Nick looked up with a frown. "Cece doesn't love Schmidt." Jess shook her head, knowing her best friend.

"What?" Holly looked around the room before laying her eyes back on Schmidt.

"Why don't we go talk about this in my room?" Schmidt smiled nervously as he ushered Holly towards his bedroom. Shooting Nick and Jess a 'thanks a lot' look, Schmidt disappeared into his room, along with his one night stand. Then, it was clear that it was just Jess, Nick and Sam left.

Jess felt her heart pumping in her chest, it almost hurt. She didn't even know how to think straight.

"Well, babe, I best go home." Sam spoke up, shifting himself off of the stool. Pulling Jess in for a goodbye kiss, Sam got a little carried away.

Jealousy stung Nick as he watched with annoyance. He watched Sam wrap his arms around Jess, making this kiss last for a long, long time. But above his annoyance, Nick noticed something. Jess wasn't reacting.

No arms around the neck, no body pressing. Nothing. In fact, her eyes weren't even closed. They were open, panic written all over them. That made Nick feel a bit better. It was as if he had one over Sam. He had a reaction, Sam didn't. Stop thinking like an idiot, Nick.

"I'm gonna go get my things." Sam gestured to Jess' bedroom before disappearing. Then, before they knew it, the two were alone.

They glared at each other when the other one wasn't looking, sometimes locking eyes. They'd look somewhere else, anywhere else. Both had never felt so awkward when with each other.

What have I done? Nick thought with anger. He'd wrecked such an amazing friendship with Jess over some stupid feelings he could have continued to hide away in the corner of his heart.

Wait, no. His mind. His mind, his mind, his mind. Not his heart. They weren't heart worthy feelings. Were they?

"I-I, I'm gonna go get..." Jess pointed to the bathroom with her thumb, not giving Nick one look.

"Y-yeah." Nick nodded, looking down at his soggy cereal. Watching Jess rush off like a child, Nick sighed. Why did he have to go make things complicated?

Why did he always do stupid things?


	4. Chapter 4

"Do you know what the time is?!" Cece's greet to Jess was a lot different than usual, moving out of her doorway to allow Jess to enter.

"I'm so sorry, Cece. Something happened and I really need to tell you now." Jess dropped her duffel bag on Cece's living room floor.

"Jess, we have an hour. An hour!" Cece yelled, rushing around.

"Cece! Please!" Jess yelled back, watching Cece stop in her tracks. She studied her best friend, she seemed desperate for help. Sighing, Cece watched Jess sink onto the couch. Sitting down next to her, Cece frowned.

"What's wrong?" She asked Jess softly. "I don't know how to put this, but..." Jess began, looking down at her entwined fingers.

"Last night, after you left and everyone went to sleep..." Jess closed her eyes. Like a band aid, Jess. Like a band aid. "Nick kissed me." She blurted out, her eyes still closed.

It felt so good to tell someone, even though Cece was gasping and freaking out next to her. It was as if a huge weight had been lifted off of Jess, she felt lighter.

"I can't believe this! How?! When? Is he a good kisser? Does he like you? Do you like him? Did you have sex? Did you kiss him back? Have you told Sam? Have you told the guys?" Cece jumped up, excited at the whole situation, which Jess kind of saw coming.

"Cece! Calm!" Jess stood up straight, facing her best friend. "Okay, okay." Cece breathed, sending Jess a light smile.

"So, tell me everything." Cece crossed her arms.

"Well, I woke up because there was something at the door, the same noise that freaked me out earlier on that night, and I called Nick to check, and we solved that. It was the neighbour's dog jumping up at the door." Jess began to laugh. "And it turns out that the woman's coat Nick was wearing, was in fact the dog's owner's." Jess continue to chuckle.

"Jess, get to the point." Cece sighed.

"Okay, well, we were walking back to our rooms, making small talk. I said goodnight, he said goodnight, and as I walked away, he pulled me back, and kissed me." Jess breathed, still shocked that it happened.

Thinking back to it, she couldn't get over how, amazing it was.

Blinking, Jess shook her thoughts away and studied Cece's expression. She was pulling some sort of smug smirk. "What?" Jess frowned.

"I told you." Cece grinned, the smug expression still plastered on her face.

"Told me what?" Jess looked around. "Months ago, last year, actually." Cece chuckled. Jess waited with frustration for Cece to finish.

"I told you that Nick likes you. And you ignored me." Cece refreshed Jess' memory.

Jess thought back to the day that Cece stayed with her and the guys...

_"You weren't upset 'cause I was dancing with Nick, right?" Cece asked as the two best friends finished off their snacks on Jess' bed._

_"No, of course not." Jess frowned, shaking her head lightly._

_"'Cause, I think he's really into you." Cece raised her eyebrows happily before taking a bite of cheese._

_Jess dipped her head a little in disbelief. "Nick?! No. No!" She shook her head in denial. Cece was being ridiculous._

_"Come on, Jess. This is classic Eduardo." Cece raised her hands a little, reminding Jess of her school crusher, and how she was in denial and stuck to her theory that he liked Cece, not her. _

_Shaking the memory, Jess raised an eyebrow. __"We're just friends."_

_"You can't be friends with these guys. You don't think that every single one of them has thought about sleeping with you?" Cece chuckled, pointing to the door._

_"No! You just think that everyone wants to sleep with everyone all the time." Jess sighed at her best friend._

_"They do!" Cece replied. "That's why I think that." She gestured back to Nick. "Don't you hear how he says your name?" She looked back to the door with another chuckle._

_"Jess..." Cece smirked, trying her best to impersonate Nick's accent._

_"He's from Chicago. That's how people from Chicago say 'Jess'." Jess threw back, pulling an 'obviously' look. "Like 'beers', and 'milk'. And, 'lets go visit the Sears tower'._

_Just as Jess finished her amateur accent, three knocks echoed through the door before it opened, revealing Nick. "Hey, Jess."_

_Cece turned her head to Jess after Nick spoke her name. That same accent._

_"I'm going to the drug store, do you need anything?" Nick asked his room mate._

_"Yes!" Cece answered for her._

_"Jess, you should go with him! So you could get that, thing... that you really need?" Cece shuffled off of the bed, giving Jess a cunning look. Jess returned that look with a scowl._

_"Oh, I wonder what that is." Nick stared at the two with squinted eyes, sarcasm in his tone._

_"She'll be right out." Cece smiled up at Nick before pushing herself off of the bed. Jess eyes followed her best friend, anger and frustration simmering in her orbs._

_"Jus'..." Cece mumbled, closing the door on Nick._

_"No. No!" Jess growled as Cece sent her a grin._

_"No! You are not coming in here and ruining all of this!" Jess started, ignoring Cece's chuckle. "I'm happy. I like these guys and I think they're starting to like me, too." Jess ended her sentence in a surprised tone._

_"Who did you tell me was your perfect man?" Cece ignored Jess' plea entirely. "Walter Matthau, from Grumpy Old Men. And I could be girl Jack Lemmon..." Jess mumbled._

_Cece's face lightened as she looked from the door back to Jess. "He's a total Matthau!" Cece grinned, gesturing to Nick. _

_"I'm telling you, he gets you." Jess had no answer to that._

_"And did you see his feet? A guy's feet point at what they want. His feet were pointing right at you." Cece pointed out._

_Jess glared at her best friend in disbelief. "Why wouldn't his feet point at me? Otherwise, he's standing like a duck!" Jess stood up, demonstrating her theory._

_"Just, come on. Go. Get out there." Cece pushed Jess to the door. "Eurgh." Jess sighed._

_"Hey, you ready? Come on!" Nick yelled from the living room. "Be there in a 'sec, bro!" Jess yelled back._

_"Did you just call me 'bro'?" Nick replied with confusion._

_Jess looked at Cece with a light shrug, watching her friend roll her eyes. "Y-Yeah..." Jess sighed._

Cece was right.

"Do you like Nick?" Cece raised an eyebrow.

"AH! BAH!" Jess yelled, not wanting to answer that. Cece knew that was a yes.

"Have you even spoken to him?" Cece raised an eyebrow. "Well, we kind of had words." Jess cocked her head a little.

"Meaning...?" Cece's eyebrow stayed raised. "I told him I was going to get ready." Jess mumbled, looking down at Cece's couch.

"Oh my god, what has happened?!" Jess placed her head in her hands before falling onto Cece's lap. Sighing with a light smile, Cece stroked Jess' hair.

"Look, Jess. I don't think you know what you're feeling right now, but I have a slight idea of what's going on in your head." Cece began. "I know you're confused. But you need to stop thinking about it. We'll go to the convention, try to have fun and maybe the stress-free day will help you to solve it all." Cece finished, watching Jess turn her head to focus on Cece.

"You think?" Jess asked in her cute voice. "I know." Cece smiled.

"Now, let's go make us both look hot. Marriage material."

...

"Wow. This place is fancy." Winston spoke his first words as the boys entered the wedding convention. It was set in a posh hotel, filled with cultural decorations and tables of beverages and snacks.

"Look, Winston. They're everywhere." Schmidt spoke in disgust, studying every Indian that crossed his path.

"It's like a chocolate fountain in here. I won't stand a chance." He sighed.

Nick and Winston shared the same wide-eyed expression, glaring at Schmidt.

"Do not say jar. There is no jar here, I can say what the hell I please." Schmidt proved a point just as an elderly lady dressed in cultural robes approached the three boys. "Welcome." She smiled, handing the boys three Saraki's each.

Glancing at each other, the boys politely took the Saraki's and placed them on their heads. Nodding, the lady left them in peace. "Yeah, I'm not wearing this." Winston stated simply before removing the turban off of his head and placing it on a table nearby.

"I'm ready to discover the world of Cece. I will find a way to win her back." Schmidt informed the boys before adjusting his turban and disappearing into the crowd.

Nick looked around, his gut still aching from nerves and worry. He realized it was just him and Winston by the side of the room, no one interrupting. He had to do his best to hold back all his urges of telling Winston about the incident.

"Dude, are you okay?" Winston studied his friend as Nick strained his face, standing perfectly still. "I'm great." Nick shrugged.

"Wait, I know that face..." Winston squinted his eyes before turning Nick around, studying his back. "Sweat Back!" Winston hissed, glaring at the wet patch on Nick's lower back.

Turning Nick back around to face him, Winston looked him dead in the eye. "What do you know, Nick?" He asked his friend with an evil tone.

"Nothing, I know nothing. Nothing is what I know and all I know!" Nick rambled on while secretly fanning his back with his hands.

"Nick, tell me your secret now!" Winston whispered loudly. "Ahh! I kissed Jess!" Nick snapped back, unable to hold it in.

It was like he was holding his breath, and he was so close to passing out he just needed to exhale. It made him feel so much better, despite the shocked and angry look on Winston's face.


	5. Chapter 5

There was nothing but silence.

Winston was set in his angry stage, hands on his hips as he stared to the ground. "Wins-" Nick began.

"No!" Winston held a finger to Nick's lips, still staring at the ground. Finally, he blew his top.

"I cannot believe you! Do you not have any self control?" Winston hissed. "Self control?" Nick frowned.

"Yes! Jess is your room mate! Our room mate! You can't go around kissing your room mates!" Winston yelled.

"So it's okay for Schmidt to Frado-kiss me, but I can't kiss my room mate?" Nick raised an eyebrow.

"It's different with Schmidt, he needs to know that you care- No, do not change the subject!" Winston waved his arms around like a puppet.

"Why? Why did you kiss her?" Winston's voice escalated. "I don't know!" Nick shrugged. He really didn't know how to explain this.

"I mean, what were you thinking?" Winston squinted. "I wasn't thinking anything..." Nick's sentence ended in a trailed whisper.

How did he explain this?

Shaking his head, Winston looked around before glaring back at Nick. "You know she has a boyfriend, right?" Winston reminded Nick.

"Yeah, I know she has a boyfriend." Nick closed his eyes, sighing.

"Yeah, okay. Have you seen him?" Winston asked. Crossing his arms, Nick nodded.

"Yeah." He whispered.

"Have you seen you?" Winston asked his last question. Sighing, Nick let his head fall. Winston was right.

He was nothing compared to Sam. Just a loser bartender with no go or drive.

"I can't believe this. You have totally violated the room mate agreement. Schmidt is gonna _kill_ you!" Winston pursed his lips.

"Wait a second, you guys wanted me to kiss her! It was part of True American!" Nick frowned, pointing that out.

"Yes, that was part of a game! And you chose to climb out onto the ledge and almost killed yourself! But after that, you kissed her for real. The game was over." Winston stated the facts before sighing.

"Oh my god, you kissed Jess!" Winston couldn't let it sink in.

Sighing, Nick turned away from a panicking Winston before his eyes landed on the back of the brown-haired beauty he knew very well.

Freezing, he watched Jess turn around in shock after hearing what Winston just said.


	6. Chapter 6

Looking twice from Winston to Jess, Nick eye's widened.

He felt terrible. Jess clearly looked embarrassed as her cheeks flushed a shade of pink.

"Nick?!" Jess hissed with panic, her heart racing. "Jessica Day!" Winston yelled.

Her cheeks flushing even more, Jess held the clipboard she was clutching over her face with embarrassment.

Pulling Nick by the the shirt, Winston rushed over to his other room mate.

"Jessica, is this true?" Winston asked desperately, as if he was part of some dramatic television scene.

Jess dared not remove the clipboard from in front of her face, but Winston's hand was more insisting. Snatching the clipboard away from Jess' hands, Winston studied her flushed expression. "I don't believe this." Winston whispered.

Nick fixed his gaze to the ground. He didn't want to look Winston in the eyes, and he sure didn't want to watch the embarrassment and nervousness grow on Jess' face. That was his own doing, and he hated that.

"Did you throw him a punch? Did you tell him off?" Winston asked Jess, knowing that she'd tell Nick straight.

Shakily looking at the top of Nick's hanging head, Jess swallowed.

She could say she hit Nick. She could say she punched him in the gut, but that would be lying. And Jessica Day could not lie.

Nick brought this on, but Jess didn't stop it, for reasons she didn't know of.

Nick raised his head, locking eyes with Jess. He was sending her a mental thought, and she knew what it was.

He was letting her know it was all right to lie. To say she backed off. Closing her eyes, Jess turned her face to Winston.

"No, I didn't " Jess mumbled, watching Winston's, as well as Nick's faces drop with shock.

Nick's heart pumped faster. Why wasn't she lying? Why was she sticking with the story? Did she feel bad? That _was _very 'Jess' of her.

She would never hurt Nick, he knew that.

"What?" Winston raised his eyebrows.

"I didn't stop the kiss." Jess mumbled, looking away from Winston.

She could imagine the steam escaping from his ears. "I don't believe this!" Winston's arms flew in the air as he yelled.

"Winston, please stop yelling." Jess rushed to Winston, placing a hand over his mouth.

"I know you're shocked and confused, but right now this needs to be kept a secret. Sam is going to be here any minute and I can't handle him knowing right now. It just needs to be brushed under the carpet." Jess' eyes pleaded, too large and wide for Winston to argue back.

Them words hurt Nick. Brushed under the carpet? No, no way. This isn't the type of thing that could be brushed under the carpet.

It wasn't a mistake. Nick meant it, and he knew Jess was meant to kiss him back. If it was a mistake in her eyes, she would have pulled away, not moulded herself to Nick's body.

"Fine." Winston mumbled underneath Jess' hand.

Dropping her now-moist hand, she wiped it on her blue dress before Winston looked at Nick and her.

"I'm going to go get a drink to try and calm myself. While I will be leaving you both alone, can you promise to control yourselves?" Winston asked sarcastically, anger still simmering beneath his skin.

"Winston." Jess raised an eyebrow as Winston rushed off in a strop.

Exhaling, Jess began to turn and walk off. Nick wasn't allowing this.

"Did you really mean that, Jess?" Nick followed her, grasping hold of her arm before spinning her back around.

Staring at each other, this brought back the breathtaking memory of the night before.

Catching her breath, Jess looked from the hand on her arm up to Nick. "Under the carpet." Jess almost spat.

She didn't know why she was reacting like this. Jess was never an angry girl, it would usually be Nick freaking out and yelling.

Truth be told, Jess didn't really know how to react, and being angry seemed the easier option.

Swallowing, Nick watched Jess' eyes darken. His stomach twisted as she pulled her arm away, storming off.

He watched her blue dress chase after her, knowing that she felt the exact same way as him right now. _Clueless_.

...

"Winston knows, Winston knows." Jess shrieked silently to Cece as her eyes darted around the room.

"Now Winston will tell Schmidt, and Schmidt will faint again, which is quite worrying and dangerous, then Sam will turn up and nurse Schmidt better and Schmidt will blurt everything out in panic, and that will be the end of me and Sam." Jess began to feel so very sick.

"Jess, you need to calm down. You're going to make yourself ill." Cece frowned, holding Jess' shoulders. "What did I say? Just don't think about it. Avoid everyone. Just, _breathe_." Cece chuckled.

"But what about Sam? I can't avoid Sam. He'll know something's up." Jess sighed, closing her eyes with guilt.

"Okay, you will need to interact with Sam. Just put on a happy face and try not to freak out. Just be relaxed and work your way through today with Sam." Cece explained.

"Sam." Jess repeated, her eyes ever so wide as she looked over Cece's shoulder.

"Sam?" Cece let go of Jess' shoulders before turning.

"Sam." The girls chimed with huge grins.

"Hey, guys." Sam smiled back, slightly creeped out by the welcome.

"Well, I'm going to go mingle. You never know, my future husband may just be underneath this roof." Cece smirked before disappearing, leaving Jess with her heart in her mouth.


	7. Chapter 7

"So, do we have to sign up to anything, or...?" Sam asked as the couple casually pranced about the convention. He was studying the many people participating in group exercises.

"I think so, I didn't really find out much when I got here..." Jess' words were just a bag of nerves as she played with her fingers while watching her feet take one uneasy step after the other.

"Jess, are you all right?" Sam stopped, grabbing Jess' attention. Turning her body, Jess swallowed her dry throat for what seemed like the hundredth time today.

"Nothing's wrong, Sam." She shook her head lightly, Sam's curious expression not budging. "I'm just a little freaked out." Jess began to lie.

"Wedding conventions, commitment, you know, ahhh!" Jess chuckled nervously. Her lies were just one big mess after the other.

Why couldn't she lie like Schmidt?!

"I get you." Sam chuckled, grabbing Jess' hand. "It all looks a lot of fun, though." He gestured to the couple-related activities ahead of them.

Sighing, Jess lead Sam to a table that looked like it held information. "We'd like to do some of these group activities." Jess smiled at the Indian lady. Asking for their names, the lady wrote down 'Jess' and 'Sam' on stickers before handing them to the couple.

"Here, allow me." Sam smirked, patting Jess' sticker onto her dress. Tapping her breast more than once, Sam started to chuckle as Jess rolled her eyes, catching Nick and the guys entering the room.

Eyes growing wide, Jess and Nick locked expressions before Jess pushed Sam's hand away.

"Jess, what is up with you?" Sam chuckled with a frown before Jess rushed towards the group activities. Nick's eyes followed Jess as she joined the circle of people before looking down. This wasn't going to be easy.

Studying her surroundings, Jess thought she'd take Cece's advice. Just focus on today. It couldn't be_ that_ hard, right?

"So, couples in the hoops." An old Indian woman instructed. Jess studied the hula hoop on the floor in front of her as Sam approached her, standing next to her awkwardly.

Had he done something wrong?

Jess knew he felt that way, and that made her feel worse about herself. He'd nothing wrong, at all. It was Nick.

Stupid Nick!

With that, Jess instinctively glared up at Nick as him, Schmidt and Winston joined the circle. Nick glared back with eyes of shock. What did he do to deserve that look?

Folding her arms in anger, Jess watched Sam pick up the hoop, confusion written on his face. "We get in it, Sam." Jess instructed, her words a little snappier than she wished.

Placing the hoop around them both, Sam looked down at Jess. "Have I done something to piss you off, babe?" He murmured, his crooked smile fading. Jess sighed, looking at their feet.

"No, Sam. I'm just in a bad mood and I'm taking it out on the wrong people." Jess whispered, sending her boyfriend a sincere smile.

And the crooked smile was back.

She loved that crooked smile. But something happened as he leant down to kiss her. Something she was utterly shocked at.

As Sam's lips pressed against Jess', all Jess could picture in her mind was the kiss between her and Nick.

All of it. Every single bit.

Her eyes opening wide, Jess kissed Sam quickly before listening to the instructions.

Focus, Jessica.

Jessica.

Jess liked the way Nick said 'Jessica'. He'd rarely say it, but when he did it flipped her stomach- What?! No! Jess, stop it! What the hell are you doing? What is wrong with you?!

"Jess?" Sam's voice snapped her out of her wild thoughts.

"Huh?" She snapped her head up, noticing that everyone was beginning the task.

"Did you listen to what we had to do?" Sam asked, a slight frown on his face.

"Sorry, I just dazed for a moment there. Can you explain again?"

...

"That's it, couples. Try to use the space between you!" The Indian host coached as the couples balanced the basketball between their stomachs while keeping the hoop around them. "Jess and Sam, brilliant!" The lady cheered.

Nick, whom was paired with a young Indian woman, peered over at the couple, jealously prickling through him. Jess kept one eye on him as she watched him grimace.

"Nick and Aarika, perfect! Keep the balance up!" The lady congratulated them.

Nick sent Jess a cocky smile while trying to hold the basketball on his stomach as well as the hoop around him and the hot Indian girl.

Losing it, Jess let the basketball fall to the ground before pulling Sam in for a kiss. Surprised, Sam's eyes flew open with confusion as all the couples looked at them.

"Is that one point?" Jess asked purposely stupidly, holding up a finger. "...No." The host shook her head with an unsure smile.

"Oh, whoops!" Jess chuckled, shrugging up at a still confused Sam.

With the chances she got, Jess moved her eyes over to Nick who was trying so hard to hide his jealousy.

He wanted to play the same game as Jess, but kissing an Indian babe who was a total stranger to him would result in him being thrown out.

He'd find a way, though.

He'd find a way to throw Jess' little game back in her pretty little face.


	8. Chapter 8

"Okay, this challenge is called, 'what can you make with the cardboard rolls?'." The host began after they moved to the next room.

Studying the different sized cardboard tubes and the sticky tape on the table in front of her, Jess frowned.

She wasn't enjoying herself, at all. She actually felt like she was suffocating.

"In this challenge, I shall be picking the couples, to mix it around and throw out different ideas." The lady explained.

Closing her eyes, Jess just wanted to be back in bed, or on the sofa eating ice cream, watching Dirty Dancing for the two-hundred and forty-third time.

"Sam, Sam Sweeney?" The lady called out as she read the list of names involved. Looking up at Sam, Jess sighed as she watched her boyfriend walk off to his chosen couple.

Jess looked around the group. Why did she have to mingle?

Jess was the happiest person in the world, but today she did not want to mix with people.

Although, if she did want to be paired with someone, it would be the old Indian man in the corner. He wasn't speaking much. Jess was appealed that.

"And finally, Nick Miller and Jessica Day." The lady called out.

Snapping out of it, Jess looked around, realizing every couple had gone, leaving her and Nick standing there.

The last two. Just like gym class in high school. But even worse.

Glaring from Nick to the host, Jess' eyes grew so wide, Nick thought they'd explode.

"No, no, no..." Jess and Nick mumbled.

"I can't work with him. He sucks at group challenges. Anything commitment related, really." Jess retorted, sending Nick a scowl.

"Yeah? Well, I can't work with her. She's such a perfectionist and a big know-it-all, I'm not sure I'll be able to even get a word in edgeways-" Nick pulled the turtle-face as Jess interrupted him.

"There you go again, with the whole 'know-it-all' thing! If I'm _such_ a know-it-all, then why did you put me in your novel-?" Jess yelled back. "People, please!" The host yelled. "Don't be party-poopers, just do the challenge together." She shrugged.

Scanning the room, Jess and Nick realized that whole outburst was in front of _everyone_.

Catching Sam's eye, Jess swallowed. Sam slightly frowned before chuckling at the two.

"Okay, so here's what you have to do..."

...

"Don't stick that there, you idiot. It needs to go here otherwise it won't balance." Jess hissed slightly, snatching the cardboard tube out of Nick's hands.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Ms Perfectionist." Nick rolled his eyes, throwing a rolled up newspaper page towards Jess' direction.

"Did you just throw page three of the Los Angeles Times at me?" Jess gasped.

"Maybe I did, or maybe it was the comics section." Nick glared back. "That's right, Jessica. I can be brutal!" Nick yelled as a newspaper page flew past his head.

"Just shut up, Nick. Why are you even here? You and your turtle-face should be in the loft sulking your life away, hiding from any good things that come near you." Jess whispered with anger.

"Jess, you liked kissing me!" Nick blurted out, shocking Jess. "It's fine to say that!" Nick sighed.

"No, I didn't " Jess mumbled, wrapping sticky tape to random places of the newspaper-covered tubes.

"I'm not on my knee asking you to marry me." Nick stopped what he was doing and looked up at Jess.

"It was a nice kiss." He breathed.

"You were like a dog, and, and my mouth was like a bowl full of, full of dog milk!" Jess spat, throwing bits of newspaper at Nick while sticking sticky tape anywhere.

"It was like a damn fairy tale, that kiss! That was the best kiss of your life." Nick raised an eyebrow as he watched Jess' face fall.

They both knew he was right.

"Are you serious?" Jess cocked her head, the sticky tape stuck around her hands.

"You should take a little responsibility, tarting around in that little soft pink robe, expected to get kissed..." Nick began.

"Tarting around?!" Jess interrupted him.

"I am a man, Jessica!" Nick yelled.

There it was again._ Jessica. _

"Pink robes are my catnip." He muttered.

"And we have a winning couple!" The host cheered, pointing to Nick and Jess' creation.

"We are _not_ a couple!" Nick and Jess chimed, their words coated in anger.


	9. Chapter 9

"Thank you to everybody for attending the convention today." A spokeswoman began her speech as everyone settled in the main hall.

"We've had so much feedback from different couples, and it's been a lot of fun to mix with you all..." Her voice drowned from Jess' ears as she watched Nick stare at the spokeswoman.

Jess knew he wasn't listening. Nick never listened.

Turning her head back to the front, she caught Sam gazing at her in the corner of her eye. "What?" She whispered, eyeing her boyfriend.

"There's something you're not telling me." He murmured, sighing a little. "What?! No way, boyfriend." Jess whispered loudly, pushing Sam's arms playfully.

"Jess, you cannot lie. At all." Sam chuckled lightly. She made him laugh so much, but he knew something bad had happened, he didn't want to give in to Jess' charm.

Sighing, Jess left her hand to drag away from Sam's arm. "Okay, Sam." She began, keeping her voice to a minimum level.

"Something happened last night, and you're going to be upset. I don't want you to be upset, but I also don't want to keep this from you because it's eating me up inside." Jess started, watching Sam's eyes slowly darken.

His estimate was correct.

The news was bad.

...

"I don't believe this." Nick heard a voice speak up slightly in the crowd to the left of him. Looking over slightly, Nick tried to match the voice to the face before his heart dropped.

_Sam_.

He looked so angry, so disappointed. She'd told him. Jess had told Sam.

Feeling uneasy, Nick tried his best to secretly watch what was happening.

"Sam, please don't get mad." Nick heard Jess whisper. _No_, Jess. Let him be mad and leave, so I can come and make you feel better and tell you that everything's all right.

Seriously, Nick. Sam's a good guy. He doesn't deserve this.

Yeah, Jess and his relationship didn't start off with sparks and romance. They'd both lied to each other about their identities and personalities, and yes, it did start off as friends with benefits. But Sam came back for Jess. He liked her.

And Nick didn't know by now how much Sam was into Jess, but it still made Nick feel like a horrible person.

As he was deep in thought, Nick's mind focused back into reality just as the piercing eyes of Sam Sweeney locked onto his.

Anger simmered through that glare, as if Sam was saying, 'why would you do this?' Yep. Jess had definitely told him.

Pulling his eyes away from Nick's, Sam looked around the convention before getting up. " I'm out." He muttered, scooching past Jess to get to the hall.

"No. No, Sam." Jess plead silently, following him out into the hall. Nick's eyes followed the damaged couple. He needed to sort this.

This was his fault that two people who cared for each other were falling apart. As much as it would bring him happiness to see Jess and Dr Sam not together, he needed to think of Jess' feelings.

He needed to stop thinking about himself.

...

"Sam, wait." Jess begged, watching Sam place on his jacket as he tried to escape the convention. " I'm really sorry." Jess' voice began to wobble as she balanced in her heels, scurrying after Sam.

"I said I wanted to commit to this. I thought you understood what I meant." Sam sighed, disappointed in Jess. "I do! I did..." Jess couldn't find the right words.

Before she could say any more, a familiar voice began to speak from behind her.

"Hey, hey. Sam, listen." Nick appeared beside Jess. "Wha-?" Jess began, worried with the whole scenery. "Just hear me out." Nick mumbled to Jess without any eye contact. Taking a pause, Nick looked up at Sam.

"I kissed her." He mumbled.

"Okay? She didn't kiss me." He sighed before looking at Jess.

Hesitating, he began to talk as he studied her beautiful pale face. He didn't know what those big eyes were telling him, he could never figure her out.

"It didn't mean anything to her." Nick muttered. Glaring at Nick with shock, Jess swallowed constantly dry throat.

"Thank you." She whispered, just before she caught a glimpse of Sam's hand hitting Nick in his windpipe.

One uncomfortable cry escaped Nick's lips before he fell to the ground.


	10. Chapter 10

"Oh my god!" Jess yelled, her voice shaky as she fell to the floor next to Nick.

"I'm sorry, Nick. It's the training." Sam explained, looking up at the ceiling.

"He's in such terrible shape! You could have killed him." Jess cried out, looking up at Sam.

"I'm gonna kick your ass, man." Nick's voice gave off the wrong tone as a high pitched key came out of his mouth, holding his throat in pain.

"Jess, it may have not met something to you, but it meant something to me." Sam sighed, holding Jess' gaze before stepping back.

"Sam." Jess called out in sadness. Watching Sam turn and disappear through the entrance, Jess didn't know what to do.

Silence filled the halls, only Nick's sharpened breath to be heard. "Jess." Nick's high voice coughed out.

Sceptically turning her head, Jess studied the in-pain Nick she'd always end up helping. Why did she do that? Why would she fall to Nick's side when he needed someone? Why was it always her?

"I'm sorry, Jess." Nick coughed, his voice slowly returning to its usual pitch. "I did try." He whispered, sitting up right. "It's fine." Jess mumbled, getting up from the floor. "I jus..." She began, not knowing what way to run.

As she tried to say something, Winston's voice filled the halls. "What the hell? What happened out here?" He asked the pair, studying Nick in pain.

"Why are you guys being so loud?" Cece rushed into the hall, Schmidt following him. Studying the scene, Cece looked up at Jess. "Where's Sam?" She swallowed, knowing something bad had happened.

"Jess." Nick breathed, pulling himself off of the ground.

"I-I'm just really pissed at us both right now, and I really, really don't want to speak to neither of us." She mumbled with a cracked voice before heading to the entrance.

"Jess!" Nick called after, shocked at her response. Within a second, she was gone, her long tousled hair chasing after her.

"Nick, what did you do?" Schmidt's voice was filled with confusion, being the only one that didn't know what had happened.

"I kissed Jess, man." Nick mumbled, rubbing his face with his hands.


	11. Chapter 11

He wasn't even hesitating to tell anyone, now. He just wanted to mend things with Jess.

After all of the silly and ridiculous arguments the two had shared, this was the worst. Jess had never been this mad with Nick, ever. And Nick? Well, he'd never hurt Jess like he had.

Tuning back into reality, Nick took in all of Schmidt's screams and bad language. "Schmidt, I get it. You're pissed. But I don't care right now." Nick turned to face his friends.

Winston had a 'I told you' look on his face. Cece had a 'it's sad right now but it will totally get better' look on hers and Schmidt? Well, Schmidt's face read 'Nicholas Miller, did the room mate agreement mean nothing to you?'

"All I care about right now, is figuring out what the hell is going on in that girl's huge, crazy brain." Nick began, his voice filled with frustration. "Underneath all of that singing, and that knowledge, and that over-the-top kindness, she's hiding something from me, and she's doing pretty good at hiding it." Nick's voice began to raise.

"I just can't figure out." He looked down, not wanting his friends to reply. He just needed to get out a lot of unsaid words.

"And she can't figure me out. That's our problem." Nick shrugged.

"This is so weird. I don't like it. I despise it." Schmidt spoke up. "You and Jess? The thought of it is making my skin crawl." He spat.

"It's like watching Bambi get shot by a scruffy bartender." His words were spoke harshly, just as Schmidt would.

"This mango chut-e-ney is going to come up, I must leave." He began to gag as Winston lead him back into the main hall.

"That's it, Schmidt. You just leave." Nick called out after his room mates before setting his eyes on Cece following them. "Woah, hold on there." He yelled, watching Cece turn her body to him.

"You're not going anywhere. I need to ask you a few things." Nick sniffed.

"Me?" Cece raised her eyebrows while pointing to herself.

"I need to know what the hell Jess is feeling." Nick replied quickly. He really couldn't take it any more. Why was she so hard to understand?

"Why are you asking me?" Cece crossed her arms, trying her best to stop the growing smirk. She could see it all falling into place.

"Because, she is like a girls' diary. With locks on the side and a password protect system. I can't stand it." Nick snapped. "You're her best friend, you must know something. She must have told you something, anything." Nick shrugged, his voice softening.

"What are you feeling, Nick?" Cece asked with that growing smirk, her arms still folded.

"What am I feeling?" Nick pointing to himself. "You wanna know what I'm feeling, Cece?" He asked once more, his voice raising.

"Uh-uh." Cece nodded.

"Well, Cece, I am feeling frustrated. Absolutely brain-ached with your stupid, perky, happy, jumpy best friend that never seems to be down except for when I hurt her." Nick began.

"I hate the fact that she never sees the worst in people, the worst in me. She's always thought of me as some sort of helpless lovable rogue, but I'm not. I want to get that into her head, that I'm just a loser who can't stand commitment and always ends up hurting people as well as himself." Nick breathed. Cece kept that same smirk on her face as she watched Nick pour everything out.

"I always find myself thinking about her way too much. You know what? I go to sleep thinking about her, and I wake up in the morning thinking about her. She's always in my mind, like a bright coloured post-it that is forever stuck in my brain. I sometimes sit there and daydream about these little miniature Jess and Nick's running around, unfortunately gaining my terrible bed hair but Jess' bright, beautiful eyes, as well as her perfect skin."

"I always get worked up at the fact that we can never see eye to eye. We always end up arguing about some stupid little thing, like why I'm such a coward, or why she can't say 'penis'. But I absolutely love the fact that at the end of a fight, all this tension builds up between us like a huge bubble, ready to pop. But it never did." Nick swallowed.

"But, now? I got to see, to witness what all of the built up tension did to us." Nick looked at Cece.

"It created this, this amazing, passionate kiss that made me not want to let go. It was like I was connected to her in a way I can't explain. It just worked, amazingly well." Nick chuckled as Cece smiled.

"And finally, I'm surprised with myself, and quite proud, that I managed to refrain from kissing Jess all this time. I truly do not know how I done it. If I knew how much of an effect that kiss had a while ago, things would be so, so different now. And now, I'm not sure that anything's going to go back to the way it was. As much as that kiss was needed, I need my friendship back with Jess. I need it, because I've only gone one day without it and it sucks. Bad. It actually hurts me, that I hurt her. I'm nervous. My hands are clammy and my heart is pounding. Watching her walk out of that door because I upset her makes me want to punch myself repeatedly." Nick finished, catching his breath as Cece began to chuckle.

Laughing along, Nick looked at her for guidance. "Is this normal, what I'm feeling?" He whispered, now feeling ever so scared.

"Nick, sweety." Cece sighed, a warm smile resting on her lips.

"I think it's love, what you're feeling." She grinned, watching Nick's face turn white.

"Holy crap." He muttered, looking into space. "But, I've been in love. And it didn't feel like this." He pointed out.

"I think you just answered your own question there, Miller."


	12. Chapter 12

"I just wanted to listen to Taylor Swift alone." Jess sniffed as she watched Nick make a miraculous fool of himself in front of her.

"You know when you get dumped, and you're like racking your brain for what was it that I did wrong? Well, this is a really unique situation, and that I don't have to do that." Jess glared at Nick as the glass of wine wobbled in her hand.

Pausing his dancing, Nick studied Jess' tear stained face, knowing he wasn't helping. To be honest, all of this weird dancing was to try and help himself to not think about his conversation with Cece.

He didn't want his head reminding him that he was in love with this girl. He couldn't land that on Jess right now, she'd probably explode with so much information.

"What happened?" Nick joked, sitting on the edge of the sofa.

Jess sent him a glare of resentment she'd rarely use, but this seemed like the perfect time.

"I'm sorry, I know that it's my fault." Nick sighed. "Just, just tell me what I can do to make this better." He looked up at Jess as she slowly allowed the glare to ware off.

"Nick, you can't just expect this to just be fixed, that is not how things work." Jess sniffed.

"You're right, but I need to do something to cheer you up. I need to do something that'll make you forgive me." Nick shrugged lightly.

"You know what, Nick?" Jess replied before looking down at her almost full wine glass. Without thinking about it, Jess poured the liquid down her throat as quick as possible.

"Woah, Jess." Nick mumbled as Jess wiped her mouth, placing the glass on the table before standing up.

"I want to punch you." She stated before shuffling past Nick.

"What?" He raised his eyebrows, looking up at Jess.

"I would like to punch you. I think that would balance out the damage that you've done here." Jess explained, waiting for Nick to stand.

"I'm not gonna let you punch me." Nick sighed, standing up to face Jess.

"Why not? You let me do it before." Jess pointed out, feeling pumped.

"That was because _I_ punched you, we had to make it even." Nick raised a finger.

"So, lets make it even! I think you owe it to me to let me punch you." Jess crossed her arms, not backing down.

Studying her determined expression, Nick exhaled. "All right." He agreed with a mumble, watching Jess reveal a triumphant grin.

"Just-just not near the TV, we're not having another one being broken because of your terrible coordination." Nick raised an eyebrow before moving out of the lounge area and towards the table.

"Bad coordination? Really, Nick?" Jess frowned, following him. "This makes me want to punch you even more." She muttered as Nick faced her.

"Okay." He breathed out, preparing himself. "All right, lets go. I'm ready." He nodded, spacing his legs apart slightly.

A little part of Nick had prayed that Jess would chuckle and say she's joking and that she would never hit Nick, but he knew that wasn't true.

She'd punched him before and she'd do it again.

Clenching her hand into a fist, Jess brought it back like a sling and launched it forward, to be let down.

Ducking, Nick crouched to the ground with his eyes shut.

"What the hell, Nick?" Jess yelled, looking down at the coward.

"I couldn't, Jess." Nick mumbled, still pinned to the ground.

"You're such a coward!" She rolled her eyes. "Nick Miller, the coward!" Her voice picked up as she stormed from behind the sofa and towards her room.

Nick could feel the anger behind to rise from Jess as he stood up, which kind of was a good thing. "And why am I such a coward, Jessica?" He jumped up, stopping Jess in her tracks.

"Why?" She turned around with her eyebrows high.

"To start with, you never push yourself. You never take chances! You're always on the 'what if' side of things without trying anything. You just stay at your bar tending job and then go to your room and eat crap and don't exercise and then you moan about it!" Jess finished, breathing heavily as she played back what she just blurted out.

Studying Nick, Jess felt horrible.

Yes, it felt good to let out her anger out on Nick, but she'd clearly hurt him. Even if he was hiding his pain behind his small smirk.

"Feel better?" Nick asked Jess.

"Yes, I do. But I'm sorry." Jess replied, looking anywhere but Nick.

It was strange, this situation. If Jess had ever yelled at Nick before, he'd be sure to reply with another yell. Then they'd both be screaming at each other and one would walk off and then it would go back to normal. Jess agreed that she'd pushed it a bit.

"_I'm_ sorry, Jess." Nick mumbled before making his way round to Jess.

Watching Nick slowly lean in, Jess froze inside. What was he doing?

Before she could assume, Nick slowly placed his arms around Jess' back and pulled her in for the most awkward hug he'd ever experienced.

Full of shock, Jess placed her hands on Nick's back, holding onto his shirt.

Nick Miller had offered a hug.

He'd actually hugged her.

What on _earth_ had gotten into him?

"Well, that was a little weird." Nick chuckled awkwardly as he pulled away.

"A little weird." Jess agreed before darting her eyes everywhere. "I'm gonna go to bed." She mumbled, slowly shuffling to her room.

"Night, Jess." Nick called out after watching her door slam shut.

_Follow her. _

Shaking his head, Nick quickly moved himself to the kitchen. No more 'in the moment' decisions for him.

Look what happened from the last reckless decision he'd made.


	13. Chapter 13

Jess decided to take her morning jog she'd attend to every other day. Maybe it would help her clear her head.

As she tied the laces of her running shoes, Jess wondered if things would ever go back to the way it was between her and Nick.

Would every moment they shared alone be awkward?

She didn't want that.

Standing up straight, Jess picked up her iPod from her night stand and opened her door, surprised of the scenario in front of her.

"Nick?" Jess called out with wide eyes. "Are you- are those running shoes?!" She scanned her room mate from head to toe as she realized her was dressed for exercise.

"Yep. You ready to go?"

..

"Why are you doing this, Nick?" Jess asked as headed for the door.

"Jess, every one that is close to me has pointed out that I haven't done anything with my life and I don't look after myself and that I'm a lazy guy." Nick began, closing the door behind him.

"Except for you." He mumbled, watching Jess turn.

"That little outburst you had last night, it really slapped me around the face." He shrugged. "I never cared when everyone else said it, but with you? It really got to me." He whispered.

"Nick, I-" Jess looked down.

"Don't be sorry. Be proud of yourself. You got Nick Miller in running shoes." Nick grinned as Jess began to chuckle.

"I didn't even know you owned running shoes." Jess cocked her head as she checked out Nick's feet.

"There were an impulse buy, I literally just took the labels off of them." Nick confessed.

"New shoes, new Nick." Jess looked up at Nick with a smile.

"You could say that." Nick nodded slightly, his famous turtle face visible.

"And, seeing as this is a new Nick..." Jess began as they made their way to the elevator. "Is the new Nick going to explain what the hell that kiss really about?" Jess asked as she pressed the button.

Looking up at Nick, she tried to read his eyes. Was he going to chicken out?

"It meant a lot, Jess." Nick revealed, surprising Jess.

"I'm going to tell you something that us guys have kept from you." He began, a frown appearing on Jess' face.

"Apartment 4D has a 'no-nail oath'."

"Excuse me?" She cocked her head, slightly confused.

"On the day that you moved in, me, Schmidt and Coach took an oil to never nail you." Nick looked to the ground so he didn't have to see Jess' reaction.

"What?!" Jess yelled. "What the hell, Nick? Why?!" Her mouth was open wide with rage.

"Why on earth did you need a 'no-nail' oath?! You thought I was just gonna sleep with one of you?! Like I couldn't help it?" Jess looked at Nick with shock.

"It was me, Jess." Nick snapped his head up.

"_I_ couldn't help it."

Peering into Nick's eyes, Jess dropped her arms in shock.

Nick, he'd liked her.

All this time.

Since day one.

Since him, Schmidt and Coach sang to her when she got stood up.

Since Winston returned and they helped Jess get her stuff back from Spencer.

Since she was Nick's date to make Caroline jealous.

Since she dated Paul.

Since she dated Russell.

Since they almost got strung into a threesome.

Since he moved out.

Since they were cornered by a coyote.

Since she saved them from the coyote.

Since Nick moved back in.

Since he comforted her after she lost her job.

Since she began her fling with Sam.

Since they went to Ikea.

Since Sam told her he didn't feel that way about her.

Since Nick had punched her.

Since Nick told her that he believed in her.

Since she got her job back, and they celebrated the water being turned back on in the bathroom.

Since her parents visited.

Since spending the weekend in a cabin together.

Since Nick's dad visited and conned Jess, and how she tried to fix their relationship.

Since Nick thought that one of Jess' students was trying to kill her, and how far Nick took things to make sure she was okay.

And since he put all of his emotion, all of that tension they'd shared over the past year and a half, all of those built up feelings into that passionate, longing kiss.

Then, Jess realized it.

That kiss _was_ like a damn fairytale.

Snapping out of her memories, Jess looked up at Nick with her large, bright eyes.

And she did the unthinkable.

She grabbed Nick's grey shirt, pulled him towards her, and she kissed him.

She planted the greatest kiss she could conjure up.

Ignoring the shock, Nick wrapped his hands around Jess's waist and pulled her even closer, just about noticing the elevator doors open.

Pulling Nick back, Jess rummaged for the metal door before dragging them both into the elevator.

This was unbelievable.

All of this sexual tension between them.

How did she not notice this before?

Breaking the kiss, Jess let her hands rest of Nick's shoulders. "I just need to ask you something." She mumbled before looking up at Nick.

"What?" He breathed, still holding her close.

"I need you to be mean to me one more time." She panted with a playful smirk.

Letting out a soundless chuckle, Nick shook his head lightly.

"Look sharp, ya' dumb ass!" He yelled.

"You look sharp!" Jess yelled back.

Then, they disappeared behind the elevator doors with such happy, thankful grins on their red and flustered faces.

..

_The End._


End file.
